To check female foeticide, city to get tracker device

To keep tabs on illegal sex determination tests, Mahendergarh, neighbouring Gurgaon, would soon be the first district in the state to have the new ‘active tracer technology’ device in all its 46 ultrasound machines at 26 registered facilities.

To keep tabs on illegal sex determination tests, Mahendergarh, neighbouring Gurgaon, would soon be the first district in the state to have the new ‘active tracer technology’ device in all its 46 ultrasound machines at 26 registered facilities.

The technique would soon be implemented in other districts, a press release said on Wednesday.

Gurgaon could be the next city to have the same facility.

Mahendergarh deputy commissioner Dr Saket Kumar held a meeting at Panchayat Bhawan, Narnaul, with health officials and owners of ultrasound centers and gave instructions regarding the implementation.

He said in case someone tampered with the tracker, the SIM fitted in it would send an SMS to the civil surgeon and the deputy commissioner as well as the health worker concerned on the mobile phones registered with it.

The tracker would help in curbing the menace of female feticide as all trackers would be linked to a website, merigudia.com, through a special server which would help keep tabs on ultrasound machines round-the-clock to ensure that they are not used for sex determination tests.

He said all the recording on active tracer could be presented before court if needed, the release said and added that he stated that they would procure information even about illegal medical termination of pregnancy cases from neighbouring districts to see if these match with women under the scanner in the district.